Eight pupils were killed after a Precious Talents top school classroom collapsed. That was a tragedy that was bound to happen; the structure was built on sub-stand and weak material. It’s not any different from the tragedy in Huruma building and others where many lives were lost. In response to the tragedy, Education CS Prof. George Magoha has appointed a taskforce to look into the cause of the collapse.
This is when people will discuss how the building was not fit for human habitation, contractors of such structures go to seek injunction, walk out free and the cycle continues. Blame games shift from the city inspectorate and now to the inspectorate from the ministry of education.
Such problems are not as a result of bad laws but negligence and poor implementation. How was school the school built on chicken wire cleared for construction and to run? The laws don’t seem to be working; arrests ought to have been made less than 24 hours after the loss of innocents.
Ministry of education focuses on performance of the children in educations; more priorities are on the battles between KNUT, KUPPET and the leadership of agencies heading education and not the condition of structures where young learners go.
It’s emerging that there is only public school in that ward; this even raises more questions on where CDF go, are such funds used exhaustively? Politicians instead parade in accident scenes as disaster celebrities to castigate owners, the management and throw shades at the corrupt city inspectorate.
Prominent members of the government engaging in lamentations indicate that not even the government is up to the task to enforce the physical planning Act. The Nairobi Governor, Mike Sonko running to the local dailies to point how rotten the inspectorate department in his government is can only show that he is sleeping on the job.
PR and theatrics take centre stage, the area Mp John Kiarie is sleeping on that job blowing political horns of sycophancy and not utilizing CDF for what it is meant for. Certain sections of the society seem to be treated as those of ‘lesser gods’, children in informal settlements are in sub-stand structures with low quality education. Precious Talent tragedy is raising more questions about priorities and not audit.
